Saturday, 22 January 2011

As a food blogger, it is inspiring to see that it's possible to eventually have one's work in print. Julia Parsons has carved a nice niche for herself in the world of food blogs (she is also the founder of the UK Food Bloggers Association) and her voice is always assured and passionate about the very thing she loves.
In her first book, A Slice of Cherry Pie, she gives us a glimpse into both her childhood and daily life through culinary stories and nostalgic evocations, which I'm sure many British people feel they can relate to.

Cristian Barnett's photograph's present the food well, everything looks appetising and is guaranteed to make the mouth water. As well as the conventional cookbook layout, there are also pages that draw their influences from old photo albums or scrapbooks, faded polaroids, snapshots and notes stuck down with distressed sticky tape. Ephemera made everlasting.

I don't think there is a recipe I wouldn't want to cook and I've earmarked several for future kitchen exploration. The Pea-stuffed Chicken Breasts with Parmesan Crusts (p.39) sounds intriguing, as well as the Pot Roast Pheasants with Chestnuts and Mushrooms (p.130)
Echoing my own family's habits, there are good traditional dishes too like Heavenly Roast Chicken (p.148), Fish Pie (p.82) and Shepherd's Pie (p.163), guaranteed to get everyone around the table and digging in.

The book is sectioned by either the seasons, occasions or mood and the recipes contained within suitably reflect those special moments.
There's no focus on a particular cuisine, and that's a good point. The book is Julia Parsons' culinary journey through life and love. True cooking from the heart.

A Slice of Cherry Pie by Julia Parsons is published by Absolute Press.Hardback RRP £16.99Order yours nowBook kindly supplied by Absolute Press

A Little Bit About Me

I've been an avid collector of recipes over the years – mostly from books and magazines, but also from family and friends too.
I make no claims to being a perfect chef, but the people who eat what I cook, invariably, leave the table happy and satisfied.
Whilst I haven't yet extensively travelled the world, a comfy sofa, the internet and piles of books full of beautiful photographs, have served me well in gaining some knowledge and experience of other countries and their cuisine.

Desserts & Puddings

Miscellaneous

How To

Tasty Tips

MAKE WASHING-UP EASIER: After you've chopped meat or fish or used eggs or flour in your food processor, rinse out with cold water first, before immersing in hot. This stops the remnants from cooking on, making cleaning easier.

GET THE MOST FROM CITRUS ZEST: Grate the zest directly into the bowl, in which you are mixing your ingredients, as this will catch all the oils that burst from the skin, giving maximum flavour.

USE CLING FILM TO ROLL OUT PASTRY: Put one piece on your work surface, dust with flour, place dough on top and dust with flour again. Put another piece of cling film over it and roll away. Stops it from sticking and makes everything so much easier to clear up afterwards.

INVEST IN A SET OF MEASURING SPOONS: A teaspoon is only a teaspoon by name – with correctly sized spoons specifically for the purpose, you'll never get it wrong again.